Books
John Cooper Clarke: ‘I could go to six funerals a week. But no man can live on vol au vents alone’
The Bard of Salford, who is publishing his latest poetry collection at 77, talks to Ursula Kenny about getting older, wrestling with technology and the joys of cycling on very flat roads
Q&A
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‘I’m surprised we came through it so well’: Salman Rushdie and Rachel Eliza Griffiths on surviving assassination
As a new documentary remembers the three-decade fatwa against the novelist that led to his near-fatal knife attack in 2022, he and his wife discuss hope, history and how his life was saved by the courage of strangers
Culture
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‘What you’re being asked to do is look away. Just look away’: Omar El Akkad on watching the horror in Gaza from the west
The author of One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This talks to Ramita Navai about conflict, apathy, and the privilege of living ‘on the launching side of the missiles’
Books
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Natasha Walter: The end-times oligarchs are weary of Earth. But we should stand and fight for our home
In answer to the question ‘what can I do?’ in the face of Trump, the tech bros and their apocalyptic visions – we can come together in the love and support of our communities
Tech
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Lyse Doucet: ‘The fear of not being a journalist was bigger than the fear of what was around me’
The BBC correspondent and winner of the 2026 Women's prize for non-fiction answers the Nerve Q&A on friendship, bravery, and the importance of Yorkshire tea. Interview by Ursula Kenny
Q&A
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Meera Syal: ‘The government is like a typical Asian parent. Art is seen as a waste of time’
The actor, novelist and star of Goodness Gracious Me talks to Tara Joshi about racism, growing up, and blazing a trail under the gaze of disapproving aunties
TV
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The Recommender: Naomi Alderman
The novelist behind The Power and forthcoming book The Strangers shares her latest cultural discoveries
Books
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Jon Ronson: ‘The worst moments of my life are when I’m between stories’
As his new book The Castle is published, the author and journalist talks to Dorian Lynskey about male midlife crises, country life and why he’s written about his former friend Graham Linehan
Q&A
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The Recommender: author Meg Mason
The bestselling novelist and memoirist shares her latest cultural favourites
Books
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‘Epstein claimed Andrew was even kinkier than him’: Andrew Lownie on the book that rocked the royal family
The biographer who knows more royal secrets than almost anyone else talks to Lucia Osborne-Crowley about veiled threats, Fergie and the forces trying to hush up a scandal
News
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The Recommender: Courttia Newland
The award-winning novelist, playwright and screenwriter shares his latest cultural favourites
Books
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'We’ve been here before – bizarre men naming themselves king and behaving horribly': author Max Porter on hope, history and his dog, Happy
The bestselling writer fears for growing crises in both politics and literacy, he tells Jude Rogers – so he’s written a children’s book to get back to a ‘joyful place’
Q&A
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The Recommender: Tahmima Anam
The award-winning London-based novelist shares her latest cultural discoveries
Books
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The Nerve's summer books 2026
From a sweeping Korean family saga to a love letter to George Michael, our team of writers and editors each recommend a perfect read for your summer getaway – and one they’ll be taking on holiday. Plus three Bookstagrammers share their top picks
Culture
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'Billionaires aren’t going to save you’: Amazon union trailblazer Chris Smalls on fighting back against the gig economy
The labour activist who took on Jeff Bezos in 2022 – and challenged him again at the Met Gala this year – talks to Lucia Osborne-Crowley about courage, community, class and why he's telling his remarkable story in a new memoir
Culture
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‘Literature is about digging, not putting on a show’: author Édouard Louis on writing as an act of working-class defiance
The French novelist’s unsparing autofiction about his poor and violent childhood is designed to challenge a leftwing establishment that is losing touch with those it represents, he tells Lucia Osborne-Crowley
Q&A
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The Recommender: Olivia Laing
The bestselling writer and novelist shares their current cultural favourites
Books
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‘All the books you write change you’: Maggie O’Farrell on Hamnet, Hollywood and family secrets
After the Oscars whirl around her Shakespeare film, the novelist answers the Nerve Q&A and talks about her new book, which explores the hidden lives of her relatives, pioneering mapmakers in 19th-century Ireland. Interview by Lisa O'Kelly
Q&A
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‘They are weapons of war’: Gisèle Pelicot on the tech platforms that facilitate rape
The woman whose courage at trial transformed the debate around abuse talks to Lucia Osborne-Crowley about survival, reclaiming confidence – and shutting down the tools of sexual exploitation
News
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‘It costs less than we think to stand up for truth’: author Yassmin Abdel-Magied on the power of ‘wilful women’
The Sudanese Australian writer, a former oil rig engineer, talks to Lucia Osborne-Crowley about her new novel featuring a female outsider trying to stop a Deepwater Horizon-type disaster – and being a writer on Emmerdale
Q&A
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‘Women are being believed’: Virginia Giuffre’s ghostwriter Amy Wallace on the global impact of Nobody’s Girl
The bestselling memoir by the late Epstein survivor and campaigner has been crowned book of the year – and in her absence, her co-author has become the public face of its powerful legacy. Interview by Lucia Osborne-Crowley
News
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